1,400 Hectares Of Rice Plants In Demak Are Flooded

Rice plants in Kalianyar Village, Wonosalam District, Demak Regency, Central Java, were flooded. (ANTARA/Akhmad Nazaruddin Lathif)

DEMAK - The Department of Agriculture and Food in Demak Regency, Central Java, noted that the area of farmers' rice crops that were flooded in a number of areas reached 1,400 hectares with varying plant age.

"Temporary data for the area of rice plants inundated is around 1,400 hectares. Of course, it can still increase because the areas affected by the flood are also increasingly widespread," said Head of the Demak Regency Agriculture and Food Service Agus Herawan as reported by ANTARA, Friday, February 9.

He revealed that the flooding that occurred in Demak Regency was due to water sent from the upper area, so that when the water sent was still ongoing, of course, data on rice land affected by the floods were still possible to increase.

Later, he said, all affected rice plants will be recorded, then reported including the puso to try to get assistance to ease the burden on farmers.

The Head of Dempet Village (Dempet District) Suwondo revealed that the rice crop land in his village was also affected by flooding.

For the area of land affected by the flood, he said, it was around 70 hectares, with a plant age of between 45-60 days.

Meanwhile, the height of the flood inundation, he added, some have reached the height of the rice plant so that the plants are not visible.

"Of course, plants that are inundated and not visible can only survive within five days. The rest can certainly be puso," he said.

Likewise, he said, for rice crops that are ready to harvest, when sold, the selling price will also decrease because the quality has also decreased because the water content is too high.

Based on data from BPBD Demak, the total flood-affected areas are 30 villages spread across seven sub-districts. Among them, Wonosalam, Karangtengah, Gajah, Karanganyar, Dempet, Karangawen, and Bonagung sub-districts.